Apple Tells Shareholders That Jobs Will Return

For the last nine months, Apple has refused to get into specifics about the well-being of its chief executive, Steven P. Jobs, even as he said last month that he was taking a six-month leave of absence to deal with health problems.

On Wednesday, the company’s shareholders had their chance to press for more information — but they did not get far.

At its annual shareholder meeting here on Apple’s corporate campus, run by the chief operating officer, Timothy D. Cook, the company responded to inquiries about Mr. Jobs by saying that he still planned to return to the company in June.

“He is deeply involved in all strategic matters and has delegated day-to-day authority to Tim Cook and his team,” said Arthur D. Levinson, a co-lead director of Apple and the chief executive of Genentech. “That’s where it stands.”

Mr. Levinson said that Apple’s board regularly discussed the matter of succession at the company and that “if there is new information we deem of import to disclose, that will happen.”

Daniel Cooperman, Apple’s general counsel, declined to answer a question about a reported investigation by securities regulators into how Apple has handled the disclosure of information about Mr. Jobs’s condition.

At the meeting, shareholders approved the re-election of Apple’s eight-member board, which includes Mr. Jobs, Al Gore and Google’s chief executive, Eric E. Schmidt. All of the board members were present except for Mr. Schmidt and Mr. Jobs.

Shareholders also voted down a proposal, offered by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union, that would have given investors an advisory vote each year on the pay packages for top executives. Congress is considering mandating a similar measure.

Apple’s response to questions about Mr. Jobs’s condition did not satisfy some shareholders. Brandon Rees, a representative of the A.F.L.-C.I.O. Reserve Fund, who raised the issue during a question-and-answer session at the meeting, said afterward that the company needed to say more about an issue that could clearly affect its stock price.

“I was disappointed by the fact that the board was not more transparent about the health of Mr. Jobs in addition to a succession plan,” Mr. Rees said.

But other shareholders said that Mr. Jobs was entitled to some amount of privacy, even as they lamented his absence.

“I came to see if he was here,” said Steven Winegarden, a longtime shareholder. “I do believe he has made a very significant contribution over the last 12 years, and it will be very difficult for someone else to capture the attention of everybody in the same way.”

At one point, Apple shareholders acknowledged Mr. Jobs’s 54th birthday, which was Tuesday, by standing and singing “Happy Birthday.”